DOCUMENT RESUME ED 368 368 IR 054 935 AUTHOR Sivulich, Sandra Stroner; Enos,Randall TITLE New York Is Reading Country:Manual. 1992 New York State Summer Reading Program. INSTITUTION New York State Library, Albany. PUB DATE 92 NOTE 270p. PUB TYPE Guides Non-Classroom Use (055) Reference Materials Bibliographies (131) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC11 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Annotated Bibliographies; *ChildrensLibraries; Curriculum Development; ElementarySecondary Education; Folk Culture;Instructional Materials; Learning Activities; LibraryPlanning; *Library Services; Program Evaluation;Program Implementation; Public Libraries; ReadingMaterials; Reading Material Selection; *Reading Programs;*Recreational Programs; Social Studies; State History;*Summer Programs IDENTIFIERS *New York; New YorkState Library ABSTRACT The summer readingprogram of the New York State Library is intended to assistyouth in increasing their base by broadening their intellectual backgrounds through reading duringthe summer. The 1992 "New York is ReadingCountry" theme is intended add a few more layers to to what students already knowabout the state and to be helpful in social studies curriculaon New York. A section on New York trivia provides factsabout the state as potential program themes along with a list ofnoted state citizens. Strategies and tips are given for the summer prr,gram in the followingareas: (1) promotion and publicity; (2)decoration;(3) structuring the and sharing the books; program (4) media use; (5)games and handouts; (6) folktales;(7) programs to offer; (8) directory of placesto visit; (9) shopping list of materials; (10) credits tocontributors; (11) a 32-item bibliography ofresources used in creating the (12) a program evaluation program; and form. The folkiore sectioncontains a 47-item bibliography offolktales and commentaries. (SLD) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied byEDRS are the best thatcan be made from the original document. **********************************************************k************ U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Mee of Educahonal Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) 0 This document has been reproducedas received from the person or organization originating it. 0 Minor changes have been made toimprove reproduction quality PO4nts of sins or opinions stereo in this dOCu- ment do not necessarily representofficial IADINGCOINTRYNEW YR OERI position or policy ,IS READINii YORK IS I ! NEW YORK .1READBG (011TRY IlITHYNEW Y U IS REA I m iliEW YORK IS RE MX IS READING CO _,--., ,,,,,, Illi IS I .,..,... .... 1 "' 0111 *MIRY() ..rf. ,,,:. Z'''-'`,`n4-' ti.' 6 / i I II Ai.III 1 ii I Ell VI ;-) N' I t,) , IS Ell,1 TIT""imiF Or I "OR IS Et "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS MATERAIADLD Fel The 1992 New YorkSunedeadi E .EESN1GRIBOAINI 1411SAluil TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERICI." 1.1.11PrIVINMEW- or *a, MANUAL Created by Sandra Stroner Sivulich West Nyack Elementaty School and Randall Enos Ramapo Catskill Library System 1 9 9 2 NEW YORK STATE SUMMER READINGPROGRAM This manual was developed with Federal Library Services and Construction Act Title I funds, granted by the New York State Library. The cover artwork, the typesetting and the distribution were provided by Gaylord Bros., Syracuse. Printing services were provided in part by Canterbury Press, Rome, and Liverpool Litho, Ltd., of Liverpool, New York. \-17 CONTENTS Introduction New York Trivia Publicity and Promotion Decorating Your Library Structuring the Program / Sharing the Books Media Games and Handouts Folktales Programs Directory of Places to Visit Shopping List Credits Bibliographies Evaluation Form 4 INTRODUCTION Once upon a time, or so it was told to me, a youth librarian on this very planet, was overheard to say, "Oh, my Lord, Summer is coming AGAIN. I have to think of another summer reading program." Because of her negative attitude she was, of course, immediately banished from Children's Libraryland. Soon afterwards an underground movement was started on her behalf. The rebels had a cause. They felt it was their right never to have to listen again to a young person saying,"And this is what my book is about." The librarians feared that if they had to hear another summer reading report or had to pick another "workable" theme, they would begin to hate youth and their books. Exaggerated prose? Yes. Corny? Yes! But...the scenario has enough truth in it to make us uncomfortably aware that there are some very serious problems hidden beneath the farce. We acknowl- edge that summer reading programs are part of our job description as youth librarians, but they can become a source of frustration because of scheduling problems when staff wants to take vacation, creating new themes and plans each summer, staffing shortages, and executing the details of the program. So, we need to reiterate and reaffirm thegoals behind summer reading programs. In herdissertation on summer reading effectiveness, Dr. Jill L. Locke, asked librarians across the country why they ran summer reading programs each year. "The major reasons were to promote reading as enjoyment, to promote library use, and then to maintain reading skills over the summer months."' I'd like to focus on the third reason of maintaining reading skills over the summer months. I feel promoting enjoyable reading and library use are goals we have all year round, not just in the summer. Dr. Benjamin Bloom says all children can learn but some just need more time.2 By having summer reading programming, we are giving precisely that. We are creating an environment to give a child the time and the opportunity to read. The whole language people tell us that reading comprehension cannot take place unless there is prior knowledge. Without some background and experience about a subject, it is virtually impos- zible to understand what is being read. Our summer reading pro- grams can assist youth in increasing theirintellectual base. By reading during the summer,the young people broaden their backgrounds so that other knowledge can be layered onto an existing core. 'Jill L. Locke, The Effectiveness of Summer Reading Programs in Public Libraries in the United States (Ph.D. University of Rittsburgh, 1988), p. 82. 'Dr. Benjamin S. Bloom, "New Views of the Learner: Implications for Instruction and Curriculum," EducationalLeadership, April, 1978, p. 564. The more you know, the more you canknow! It is essential that we provide an inviting,fun and satisfying atmosphere so that children want to keep reading. In the formal sense, we are notinvolved in the educational process or the teaching ofreading. Words like "supplemental" and "enrichment" have always been used whenspeaking about the public librarians' role in the reading process. But veryrecently this educational premise has changed. Summer reading programs arenot a nice extra for thekids who read anyway and want some recognition or an alternative to day camp or anotheractivity to fill the long, hot summer. Summer reading programs areessential if kids are going to read to succeed. Theimpact that summer reading programs can have on the educationalclimate in America is enormou. Before we get too self righteous over ourimportant role, a word of caution must be interjected. Wehave to be very careful that the paraphernalia surrounding summerreading programs doesn't strangle us. Dr. Jill Locke saysif we do not serve 8% of our service population, we arenot successful,no matter how clever our decorations are or what goodattendance we've had at our programs.3 If we are tempted to limitregistration because we can't manage to listen to allthose reports or don't have room for all those stickers, then we have tore-think why we are doing all this "busy" work in the first place. 3Locke, op. cit., p. 46 7 Later on in the manual, alternatives aresuggested for some "non-traditional" ways of operating a summer reading program.We must never lose sight of the basic philosophy of summerreading programs and that is to get young peopleto read. In 1991 an LSCA grant was awarded for thefirst time by the New York State Library to assistlibrarians with this important aspect of their work. The theme, "New Yorkis Reading Country," was selected by a committee ofyouth services consultants to allow for state-wide media coverage andadvertisement. A hoped for by-product in choosingthis theme is that chil- dren and young adults will add a few more layersto what they already know about their state. The manual will alsobe helpful during the school year for.4th grade social studies teacherswho teach about New York State as part of theircurriculum. This manual should never stifle your individuality; rather, it should be used as a guide and help free yourenergies so that you can interact with the youth even more.It will provide a structure so that you can be creative withinitsframework. "Within boundaries is where we have real freedom." The thematic possibilities for "New Yorkis Reading Country" are numerous. I did not includestories just because the title or subject fit into our New York theme. My wastepaperbasket is full of rejected material. In orderto passmy programmer's "audition," the material had to have literaryquality, dramatic appeal, and be of the right length to getinto the manual. 8 Summer is our special time to shine. We're visible to the library director and to the library board as they parade through our rooms seeing our bulletin boards and summer themedecora- tions, seeing young people attending programs, and reading the newspapIr publicity the programs generate. Ourcirculation figures jump when we are programming and bringing children and young adults into the library with our summer reading agenda. We're also visible to the educational community when we go into classrooms to promote and advertise our programs. Just like having a recipe written on a 3 x 5 card won't actually feed the family, so, too, having this manual won't bring the children into the library and make them readers. But I sin- cerely hope it will give you a few ideas and a little inspira- tion.